The Regulators
by October Sky
Summary: Just as Locke and Boone disappear, so does Kate’s case, which will lead to a death if the survivors can’t get their heads straight. Part of my 'Fated' series.
1. Default Chapter

The Regulators

Chapter One

NOTE ON THE SERIES: This fic is one of two parts of a 'finale', as I'll call it, of a series I've had on here for a while called 'Fated'. It begins with Whatever the Case May Be and the order is listed in my bio, though I have to update it with the new incoming fics. Really all you need to read is my version of "Hearts and Minds" and know that Jack knows about Sawyer's past(or some of that anyway). I decided I liked that plot. You'll also need to read the last four..unless you want me to give you a long summary of what happened. I think it's four- the last one about Jack, anyway. And, oh yeah, Claire's still pregnant in my fic.

FOR RETURNING REVIEWERS: For those who read "The Message In the Bottle", this takes place after the incident with Jack, Alana, and the flying lesson thing. So Jack's been getting some help, but not just from a doctor..(insert evil grin here).

Disclaimer: I'll only give one disclaimer, unless I use a particular song or quote. Lost belongs to J.J. and co. at ABC. The Regulators comes from the title of a Richard Bachman(aka, Stephen King) book. I said the hatch is similar to something found in a Harry Potter book, which belongs to J.K. Rowling(the 'J.J.' of literature). Speaking of which..

No, you do not have to be familiar with Harry Potter to understand the hatch thing. It's just similar to a prop found in one of the books, in particular, the third..hint, hint..

Summary: Just as Locke and Boone disappear, so does Kate's case, which will lead to a death if the survivors can't get their heads straight.

From A device used to maintain uniform speed in a machine; a governor.

A review of Richard Bachman's(Stephen King) The Regulators from Time from Regulators will bring a return to sturdier, more surefire thrills: heaps and heaps of gore, . . . ambiguous but decidedly malevolent supernatural powers, and cataclysmic battles between good and ultimate evil. 

(Space)

Jack had to concentrate hard as he pulled the white medical tape bandaged around Shannon's ankle. Words danced behind him, demanding answers Jack didn't know, and he was about to round on the voice, and shout for it to just go away, when he remembered it was only Sayid.

"You didn't see who it was?" Sayid repeated for the dozenth time that evening.

"No," Jack said, fighting hard not to let Sayid know that he was bothering him, even though that was just what half of Jack wanted.

Tucking the end of the white tape into the makeshift splint wrap, Jack gave the bandage a last tug and Shannon winced above him, causing Sayid to glare at Jack in protection. Jack looked back at him, telling Sayid with his eyes that he was sorry for the pain, that he was doing all he could to help it, and that it wasn't his fault. _Right,_ Jack thought, _now if only I could tell myself that. _But it wasn't Shannon that he was thinking about..

_Jack inhaled deeply, cupping a bouquet of roses in his right hand as knocked on the wooden door in front of him, the sound erupting in a hallow echo throughout the neighborhood, and he noticed at the last moment a neighbor gardening who looked up at Jack, wondering who'd dare disturb his perfect afternoon. He gave the man an apologetic look before turning back to the wooden door that stood in front of him, and Jack was beginning to think that it reminded him of standing in front of a brick wall- a brick wall that he could not jump over, when the door creaked open, and a shine of beauty enlightened the space between him and the house he had entered maybe one too many times._

_"Hey," the blonde that stood gazing in front of him said before throwing her arms around him._

_"Woah- woah," Jack said, catching his balance and laughing, "I've missed you too- Sarah."_

Kate stood waiting under some trees that she had checked for fruit while Jack finished dressing Shannon's wound. She had overheard Shannon's story of what happened, and then Sayid's, and from what it sounded like, it was Boone who was now missing, never having returned from the rescue that they had known nothing about, which Kate knew had perturbed Jack, but she hadn't said anything.

Actually, Kate was more worried for Jack's well-being more than the still-pregnant Claire's. At least Claire still cared for herself, and let others know that she was speaking the truth when she was talking, but with Jack..hell, even Sawyer could see through Jack. But between balancing Jack's emotional, and Sawyer's mysterious dreams, Kate knew it would only be days before the universe planted a nice, gray, highlight in her hair.

Finally after what seemed like hours, Jack came out of the caves. He seemed angry, and had almost stormed out.

"What happened?" Kate asked in immediate concern.

"Nothing," Jack said, shaking it off as he chose a path to take.

"Is Shannon okay?" Kate asked next.

"She's fine," Jack said, plainly wanting Kate to just go away, but Kate wasn't letting him off the hook that easily.

"Where are you going?" By then, Kate had to hurry to catch up on him.

Jack let his actions answer her as he continued down the path, planting each foot down in an aggravated stomp, crushing leaves and limbs to bits. When he finally stopped, it took a moment for her to realize where they were: at the rock where the case had been hidden. Dropping to his knees, Jack began to search the bushes, only to find them empty.

"Dammit!" Jack said sharply.

"What?" Kate asked, moving in for a better look, until she then to saw..

Jack looked at Kate.

"Your case is gone," he confirmed quietly.

Kate looked back down to the ground, and then back up to Jack's apologetic eyes, and they both knew that this couldn't turn out well.

(Space)

Thirty minutes later, Jack and Kate were back at the beach, double checking Kate's tent in some weird scenario that Kate had sleepwalked, or maybe one of them had hid it there and had forgotten. Well, Kate was searching, Jack had practically destroyed the place, turning over suitcases and goods he didn't know that Kate had while she just stood back quietly, and watched. Kate's eyes watched Jack closely, knowing that one of the next suitcases held more of her valuables(the few that she had, anyway) and one of those was the tiny, broken, toy airplane, and she didn't know it would be Jack's reaction to her having it, or maybe him remembering why she had it that bothered her, but she didn't want to find out.

"Jack," Kate said, pulling on his arm, receiving a tug away in protest, "no Jack, stop."

Kate jerked Jack towards her, and Jack glared at her, anger boiling inside his pale face.

"It's not here," Kate said, praying that Jack wouldn't blow up at her.

Instead, Jack exhaled deeply, and ran his fingers over his head.

"I know, I know," Jack said quietly, and then let his tone grow, "I'll just keep looking for it, ask around-"

He said it before he could stop himself.

"Ask around?" Kate repeated. "Jack, this isn't going to end up like it did with that plane. I'm not letting you put your life on the line for me anymore."

She looked up at him, pleaing for Jack not to get himself into anything he'll regret. The only problem was, putting his life on the line to protect Kate was exactly what he wanted to do.

(Space)

"You're telling me that you didn't even bother to see how far down this thing went?" Boone complained after twenty minutes of climbing into dark oblivion.

Boone couldn't even see his hands in front of him, and he knew that if he lost his concentration for one moment, he might fall into his death.

"I threw a rock down," Locke replied, some feet below him, "but I never heard it crash to the ground."

"That's the point," Boone sighed.

"If a tree falls in a forest, does it really make a sound?" Locke asked out of nowhere.

"What?" Boone asked, and his concentration broke.

His foot slipped, and he fell, tempts to grab on to the rope ladder resulting in Boone's arm scratching against it, and he felt like he would fall forever until something suddenly grabbed a hold of his left hand. He couldn't see, but he was certain that that something was Locke.

"Hold- on," Locke said, having trouble doing so.

But the rope could only hold bother their weight for so long and the rope snapped, sending Boone falling, though he never heard Locke fall behind him. Not being able to control himself was the scary part, along with not being able to know when the impact was coming. That was when he slammed against a rock hard ground, crushing his knee as he let out a scream of pain, and grabbed his knee as it swelled up in pain.

"Are you all right?" Yelled a voice from somewhere up ahead.

"No!" Boone shouted, moister developing in his eyes that he became embarrassed about quickly, and swiped his arm across his eyes, his hand flying back to his knee immediately afterwards.

Even being beat up and tied to a tree by some insane druggie didn't hurt this much. It felt like the muscles of Boone's right leg were made up of bricks, and he began to worry about ever getting out of there. The weirdest part though, was that it seemed like just the thought of the pain, fear of it, seemed to make the entire situation worse.

"I'm coming down there!" Locke said into the tunnel, bringing Boone back into reality.

"No!" Boone argued. "Go find a way to get me out of here."

He didn't care if they had spent a month or four months digging this thing out, all Boone wanted was to be back on land, where he could actually see..

That's when he realized he could. A dim light was coming from what seemed like no where, a light that just beamed down on the room, and despite his pain, Boone made himself look around, and stopped half way.

Behind him, against a wall, was stationed a computer, shut off, the size of a big screen tv, and it hummed as its large monitor gave off light from underneath it. The light looked to be coming out of a cable from underground, and a large control pad that substituted a keyboard lay out in front of it, some one, one and a half feet long.

"Boone?" Locke asked from above him. "Anything wrong? Is something down there?"

He glanced at his the tear in his jeans where his knee was bleeding feveretly, and then glanced back at the screen that engulfed the space behind him.

"Yeah," Boone answered finally, "something's down here."

Author's Note: Sorry for the short and eventless first chapter. I'll try and pick up the pace, but I'm still working on the layout of events in this. I do have my plan down for the hatch, and now even the numbers, and the rescue, I just have to work on the order of things. I'll have the computer all day tomorrow and maybe even tomorrow night, along with Saturday night(assuming nothing happens) so hopefully you'll get lots of updates, and even a possible ending this weekend. I plan to get a lot done, and hope I can. Thanks for all the reviews for "The Impossible" and I hope you guys came back!

Next up in "The Regulators" and in the future:

More is revealed about that freaky computer, especially when it's turned on. And no, unfortuently for Locke and Boone, no e-mail or IM. Instead, they find something much more interesting and(finally, thank god for me!) the mystery of that stupid hatch is solved. Jack never gets the chance to betray Kate's trust of not doing anything he regrets, when Alex and Walt turn up with a dead body, and guess whose it is? Only problem, the only person that could tell them what really happened is nearly thirty feet under ground with a busted knee and a creepy old dude who really doesn't know the first thing about first aid, but pretends like he does anyway. And as for Jack's flashbacks? Let's just say it starts with a 'b' and ends with a 'y' and it lives in a crib..but not at Jack's place.

Lol, I go overboard with those summaries, don't I? Oh well. Thanks again for the reviews, and more should be up tomorrow!

Until next time..

October Sky


	2. Chapter Two

The Regulators

Chapter Two

Alex and Walt were walking back to the camp, which was taking longer than it should have. This was due to the fact that though the trails before had seemed so familiar to her, but one wrong turn had led her into unknown territory, by either her or Walt.

"Are we lost?" Walt asked finally after a half an hour of walking.

"No," Alex lied, "we're just- taking the long way around.

"Yeah, well-"

Alex stopped suddenly, and held a hand out right before they both tripped over the bloody, dead body in front of him. She didn't recogninize him, and clearly, neither did Walt.

"Is he- dead?" Asked Walt with uncertainty.

"I..I don't know," Alex said, suddenly feeling a little shaking as she bent down and checked the man's pulse, to find that he had none, "yeah, he's dead."

"How do you think it happened?"

She was now remembering why she never really liked kids: they asked so many questions they knew you didn't have the answers to. Not replying, Alex notice something black hidden by some weeds. She reached over, the grass brushing against her arms, and picked it up, seeing what it was: a gun. Knowing perfectly well how to use one(something she had also not told Walt, or anyone for that matter), she checked to see if it was loaded. At the sound of a click, she knew instantly what had happened: the man in front of her had been murdered.

(Space)

"Okay, Jack, you just need to calm down," Kate was telling Jack as she sat him down on the sand near her tent.

"Why does Jack need to calm down?" Charlie asked curiously, approaching him.

"It's nothing, Charlie," Jack lied, "just-"

"Jack!" Somebody screamed from somewhere far to their left.

The three of them turned to see Alex and Walt dragging a body out of the forest. Jumping up, Jack and Charlie ran to help them, and Kate ran after, along with Michael, who seemed relief to have found his son.

"Walt!" Michael cried, embracing his son, "Where have you been?"

"We found a body!" Walt replied, jumping with excitement.

"A body?" Michael turned to where Jack and Charlie had laid the body down.

Jack was double checking the man's post, and Kate was watching him.

"Wait," she said suddenly, "isn't that that guy with the leg? The one that Boone found?"

"There's something else too," Alex spoke up, and showed them the gun she had found, "I found it, laying right beside him."

Carefully, Jack took the gun, and looked up at Kate, who looked back down at him, and they both knew..

_"So how was work?" Sarah asked, taking the flowers from Jack and leading him to a badge, leather couch where he sat down, exhausted._

_"It's a hospital," Jack said, "people rushing in because they bumped their elbow on a computer desk. Yeah, it was great."_

_Sarah chuckled from the kitchen._

_"At least we know you're an optimist," she added, and crossed back into the living room where Jack was sitting._

_She then let her arms slip around Jack's neck as she brushed her lips against it, causing Jack to smile a little._

_"So have you thought about it anymore?" Sarah asked as she made room for herself on the couch above Jack._

_"Abut what?" Jack said in between kisses._

_"You know," Sarah said playfully, "about having a baby."_

_"I don't know," Jack sighed, pulling himself back a little, "I just don't know if this is the right time. With work and my father and everything-"_

_"But what do you think about the idea?" Sarah said, pulling Jack back towards her the distance she had placed between him._

_Jack moaned as he felt her hot breath surface against his mouth._

_"I like it," he admitted._

_"Good," Sarah said, smiling as she pushed Jack down into the couch, placing herself on top of him._

_"Why?" Jack asked, making himself comfortable._

_"Because I'm pregnant."_

_Jack stopped mid-kiss and stared up at the woman on top of him in disbelief._

(Space)

Sitting in the mist of a crowd on the beach, Jack let the conversation settle around him, and let the only he could feel be Kate's leg knocking against his every now and then as she set next to him, glancing towards Jack in concern every few seconds.

"Who do you think did it?" Charlie asked for the dozenth time.

"Maybe he killed himself," Hurley suggested.

"Jack, can I talk to you?" Sayid said from behind Jack, maybe him jump a little.

"Um..yeah."

Kate watched from the ground as Jack stood up, and followed Sayid down the beach a safe distance away from everyone else.

"Yeah?" Jack said when Sayid didn't say anything more.

"I need to tell you something I should've told you a long time ago," Sayid began, and Jack wondered if this was about Sayid's past, or the present. "When we were out looking for Shannon, Boone was attacked."

"Attacked?" Jack repeated, staring at Sayid.

"i don't know what happened," Sayid admitted, "but he was attacked, and tied to a tree."

"What are you saying?" Jack asked, trying not to get angry at the fact that this story was kept from him.

"Whoever it was," Sayid continued, "didn't want to kill him. I think they were only trying to scare him."

When it was clear that Sayid didn't have anymore to say, Jack spoke up for him.

"Well where's Boone now?"

(Space)

Boone winced as Locked pulled on the bandana he had tied around Boone's knee. Though he spent days in the woods, Locke hadn't bothered to pack a shirt, and Boone didn't even have his bag anymore, so the bandana Locke had was the best they could do. After bandaging the wound, Locke placed a water up against it, and Boone hissed at the cool feeling.

"It's fine, it's fines," Boone insisted, grabbing the bottle from Locke's hands.

Locke looked at Boone doubtfully, and then stood up, facing the large computer screen once more. It was the oddest thing he had ever seen, and though he could admit that he wasn't up to date with the latest technology, Locke was certain that nothing like this had ever been sold in stores.

"How do you think you turn that thing on?" Boone wondered out loud from the ground.

"Not like a normal computer," Locke said, running his fingers across a bar of controls that looked similar to that of which a record producer used.

"Maybe you should just- press something," Boone suggested, "key something in."

"I thought you watched a lot of tv," Locke said.

"Yeah, so?"

"Isn't that how most things blow up?" Locke asked, looking at Boone, who realized what a stupid idea that was.

"So what do you think we should do?" Boone asked, just as Locke discovered the row of numbers.

"I wonder-" Locke muttered to himself.

"You wonder what?" Boone said from the ground behind him, and watched as Locke began keying things, numbers, to be more specific. "What are you doing?"

Curiosity getting into him, Boone put his weight on his good leg, and lifting himself up, biting down another cry of pain. He then limped beside Locke, who was keying numbers compulsively. When he finally stopped, Locke sighed, slamming his fist down in the space between him and the keyboard. Boone then decided it was his turn, and instead of keying random numbers, he remembered one set that had really stuck out to him, and slowly keyed it in: 4 8 1 5 1 6 2 3 4 2.

He stepped back as the computer buzzed in front of him, sprinting into life as the screen blinked a few times, before bursting into colors of blues, greens, and yellows, sketching a picture like magic in front of them. Then the movement stopped, and Locke and Boone stared at the digital creation in front of them, and it took them a moment before realizing what they were looking at: a map of an island- _their_ island.

Author's Note: I'm soo sorry the chapters have been getting so short! But I need room for at least two or three more Jack flashbacks, and I'm just trying to space it out. If I made them longer, the chapters would take forever to get out, and there would only be a few of them. I still try to make the chapters as eventful as I can. I'm getting more and more ideas for a post island fic, and I hope to become a writing machine this weekend, so I can get to the rescue part by next fic. Don't worry, there's more to the computer than just a map. This part of the fic should actually only be one or two more chapters long, but don't worry, because I know EXACTLY what I want to happen from there! All the way up to the very last line of the sequel! Thanks so much for all the reviews!

Crazyhorsegirl88: Yep, that's it, Jack and Sarah are getting a bunny. That's why they split up. Jack couldn't keep a bunny in his apartment, plus he's allergic. So Sarah gets upset and leaves, great plot, huh? Nah, I think you're right on your second guess, and don't worry, I have it all planned out. Yeah, wouldn't Boone love to see what I'm doing to him in this fanfic?

Next up, on "The Regulators":

Jack makes a wrong assumption that could change his life, and makes Kate wonder what's really going on with him. This is the part where knowledge of the Jack/Sawyer fights in my future fic come in. But don't worry, Michael solves it all by noting that the raft is ready to go, with a place for Kate.

Thanks again, and until next time..

October Sky


	3. Chapter Three

The Regulators

Chapter Three

Author's Note: For the sake of the timeline of this fic, the flashbacks happen while Jack and Sarah are married. They're living at her place, but this is only two years before the crash, and a few months after they got married.

"What the hell does it matter to you where I've been all day?" Sawyer shouted, shoving Hurley back.

"Come on man, you know you haven't set foot in the camp all day!" Hurley yelled.

"Yeah!" Charlie jumped in. "So where have you been? Why won't you tell us?"

"Because it's none of your damn business!" Sawyer yelled into his face.

"Hey, hey, break it up!" Jack shouted as he and Sayid ran back to the scene.

The audience stared as Jack stepped into the middle of the fight.

"What's going on?" Jack demanded as he looked around at the scared faces of the other castaways.

Behind him, Sayid was giving Jack the 'don't do anything you'll regret' look, which he was also receiving from Kate.

"Charlie thinks that Sawyer killed that man," Kate sighed finally.

Jack stared at Kate hard and long before turning back to Sawyer. Then, in one move, Jack turned swiftly, grabbing the gun that Alex still held(making Alex stumble back beside Sayid) and pulled the gun on Sawyer, backing him up against a tree where Jack held the gun against Sawyer's neck.

"Come on, son," Michael whispered gravely to Walt.

"But I want to see the fight!" Walt whined.

"No, you don't," Michael said, and nodded to Jack before leading Walt away from the crowd.

"Why?" Jack said loudly after a few moments of silence following Michael's performance.

No one answered him, and Jack's face grew hard in anger.

"Why do you think that he killed him?" Jack finished.

"Jack-" Kate said, stepping up to him, hoping to talk Jack out of whatever anger had just arose in him.

"Stay out of this!" Jack shouted in her face, more forceful than he meant.

Kate took a step back, and glared at Jack before becoming just another bystander.

"Nobody's seen him all day," Hurley explained calmly from behind Jack, as Jack kept his focus to the sandy grasses below him, "and he turns up, just after that guy does. And he's the only one besides us here who knows how to use a gun."

That was when Jack lost all control of himself, and pushed the gun further into Sawyer's neck .

"Stop it Jack!" Kate cried from her spot behind him. "You're gonna hurt him!"

"I think that's the point," Charlie muttered from beside her.

For the first time, Jack looked up at Sawyer, staring at him coldly, Sawyer returning the same look to him. All Jack wanted to do right now was to give Sawyer all the pain he had ever done to Jack, but in the end, Sawyer dead was going to do no good to him, especially if Sawyer really knew anything about the situation.

"Where were you last night?" Jack demanded to Sawyer.

One look told Jack that Sawyer didn't have an answer for him, or at least, not one that he was going to give away.

"He was with me," Kate said finally, and the crowd turned to her, "he was with me when I found you in the caves."

The realization hit Jack like bricks. Of course- he had seen Sawyer himself in the caves with Kate, and he knew that if he wanted to keep his reputation up(or at least get people off his back for a while) he'd have to make up an excuse for his sudden abrupt behavior.

"Then where were you this morning?" Jack asked, and received back the same, cold stare. "Answer me!"

It was two hours since Jack had heard the news, and he still couldn't apprehend it.

"But- how could this happen?" Jack asked wearily.

Apparently Jack had fainted some time after hearing the news when he tried to sit up.

"I mean, we were careful and-" Jack's words ran together as Sarah handed him a cool glass of water, which he drunk gratefully.

"I know," she sighed, sitting next to him, and she then turned towards Jack, "but this is real, Jack, and we have to ask ourselves. Our we going to do this?"

Jack looked into Sarah's eyes, realizing that this was what she wanted, and what she wanted, he wanted, which led to him nodding and hearing himself say:

"Yeah, we are."

(Space)

"This- this is our island?" Boone said, still staring at the screen in disbelief.

It hadn't moved since Boone had turned it on, so they were still staring at the same picture.

"Sure does look like it," Locke said, as he reached out for one of the keys, and pulled down.

Like a video game, the screen changed pictures, flashing before them, and zoomed in on an open door in the middle of the ground.

"That's the hatch?" Boone guessed, and decided to try and change the picture himself.

Reaching up, Boone pulled down on a black lever, and the screen cut in two, the bottom half showing the outline of an ocean, and as it moved in, little dots on the corner of the screen crowded around a single dot.

"Are those the rest of the survivors?" Boone asked, confused. "You know, the beach camp?"

"I don't know," Locke admitted truthfully, and pulled down on a white and black lever, and the reaction wasn't what he expected.

_Don't do it._

Boone's head jerked at the sound of the voice, a voice that he recognized.

"Was that- Jack?" Boone said slowly.

_Don't do it Jack, don't do it._

"Apparently," Locke said, grim in confusion that he didn't allow himself to show.

_Please Jack- don't do this._

"That was Kate," Boone said, recognizing the voice as he turned to Locke, "what's going on?"

_You know he didn't do it..just stop this while you still can._

Jack again.

"Is he talking to himself?" Boone wondered.

"I don't think he's talking," Locke said, pulling on another lever.

_"I didn't do it," _a booming voice said, filling the air around them.

Sawyer's voice.

_Kate knows..I didn't do it._

"What do you think's going on?" Boone asked, decided his questions would be useless in his head.

"I think that we're hearing them talking to themselves- inside their head," Locke said, staring at the keys in front of him in awe.

"Like, reading their minds?" Boone said, and Locke nodded.

Boone suddenly felt very self-consious of his thoughts, expecting them to speak in the room next, and knew that he'd have to be very careful about what he thought for now on, which made him feel very uneasy.

_Don't do anything you'll regret..._ that was Sayid.

_You're better than this, Jack.._Kate again.._he didn't do anything, and you know it._

"What do you think they're talking about?" Boone asked Locke.

"It appears," Locke began, "that somebody's about to do something they'll regret."

"Think it's Jack?"

"Could be."

Boone stared at the screen as one of the mini figures shifted weight.

"Well, what're we going to do?" Boone said. "I mean, we didn't find this by mistake. It's showing this to us for a reason."

Locke turned to Boone and smiled.

"Now you're thinking."

Author's Note: Sorry again for the cheesy cliffhangers! Lol. And short chapters, but I'm trying to get them done fast. Thanks for the reviews!

Next up, on "The Regulators":

Locke and Boone's mind control is taken into action, which may or may not help out Sawyer, and as for Jack's flashbacks? Jack has a nice little chat with his daddy about being a daddy. Poetic, don't ya think?

Until next time..

October Sky


	4. Chapter Four

The Regulators

Chapter Four

_"So how's the married life?"_

_Jack turned from his spot on the pier at the sound of his father's voice._

_"How'd you find me here?" Jack asked, surprised to see him._

_After he had gotten off of work at eight, Jack had drove down to the pier that stretch out into the Atlantic ocean. The summer's sun was setting above him in clouds of pink and purple, and the site had always had a way of taking his breath away, even for a kid, and he had learned not to care how cheesy that sounded. Now, his father sat next to him, taking off his socks and shoes as he eased his feet into the salty water below, letting the waves crash against them._

_"I got one of my coworkers to follow you to work and then they called and told me where you were," Christian joked as he sat down, and then followed Jack's gaze out to the sea. "You know, you've been coming out here since you were a kid."_

_"Yeah," Jack nodded, "I know."_

_"So I guess you never forgot about the place?"_

_"No," Jack admitted, "I come here anytime there's anything on my mind."_

_"So what's on your mind tonight?" Christian asked, on top of Jack's thoughts._

_Jack let his hands dangle between his legs as he looked down at the sparkling, navy blue waters that reflected his tired image back to him. _

_"Sarah's pregnant," Jack said finally._

_"I know."_

_Unable to look at himself any longer, Jack turned to his father._

_"Sarah called me," Christian explained, "she said she though I should know."_

_Christian's eyes narrowed and Jack knew the end of that sentence would be 'because she didn't think that you would tell me.'_

_"I don't know if I can be a father," Jack said, remembering a similar conversation he had had with his father the night before his wedding._

_"I think we've talked about this before," Christian said, reading Jack's mind._

_"I don't think I can do it," Jack said, surprised to hear his voice breaking._

_"We haven't had the best relationship," Christian admitted, looking at Jack, "but all I've been trying to do is to teach you that life is hard. It throws things at you when you don't want it, but you have to deal with it anyway. And I know that from it you learned all you need to know about how to pull through. You've already done it once, and I know that you can do it again, and this time, I'll be on your side."_

_For the first time Jack looked up at his father, and as he did, he knew that he was hearing the truth._

Jack's hand shook as he held the gun, and he felt himself turning sick inside. His head told him no, to pull back, but his muscles didn't agree, and he had therefor spent ten minutes just standing there, holding the gun on Sawyer, staring at him. Sawyer had managed to relax a bit, knowing that if Jack was really going to do it, he would've pulled the trigger a long time ago. Now his biggest problem was the bark that was cutting into his back. For Jack, though, he couldn't back down, almost as if something else was controlling him, but at the same time..

_Don't do it Jack._

The odd part was, it was like the voice wasn't even his.

(A few minutes earlier)

Locke stared at the screen determined to think up a plan as voices of the castaways thoughts filled the air.

_Don't do it.._

_Please Jack, don't do it.._

_Now this is just getting old.._

Then finally he thought of something.

"Boone, tell Jack not to do it," Locke told Boone suddenly.

"What?"

"Just do it!"

"Jack," Boone said with uncertainty, echoing Kate's voice, "Jack, don't do it."

(Space)

"So are you going to do anything with that gun or am I just acting as a shelf here?" Sawyer said after it had been an half an hour.

Most of the crowd had lost interest in the fight, and drifted back to whatever it was they were doing, only leaving Kate and Sayid.

Jack, don't do it, said a voice in his head.

"Jack, you know why you're doing this," Kate said in a pleading tone from behind him.

Along with Kate, Sayid also knew why Jack was standing here, acting like he was about to murder Sawyer.

"He's not worth it," Sayid said, and at that, Jack finally decided that they were right, and lowered the gun, letting out a breath as Sawyer lowered his head, and then looked back up at Jack.

"It's about time," Sawyer said roughly, "but I knew you couldn't do it."

With that, Jack swirled around, and stormed back off towards the caves.

"Jack-" Kate began, reaching out and grabbing Jack's arm.

Jack stopped, and gave her one good look before throwing her arm off, and continued back towards the caves, leaving Sayid, Kate, and Sawyer standing in silence, until Michael interrupted.

"Hey, Kate, Sawyer," Michael greeted, walking up to them.

In the mist of what happened, Michael looked like the happiest guy in the world right now as he approached them.

"I'm going to go check on Shannon," Sayid whispered to Kate, "want me to go check on Jack as well?"

"No," Kate said quietly, and as Sayid left, turned to Michael, "what's up?"

"I just wanted to let you two know that the raft is ready to sail," Michael informed them, "we're heading out this afternoon, hoping to catch some patrol ship or something."

"Why are you telling me this?" She asked after exchanging a glance with Sawyer.

"Claire decided it be better if she'd stay on land," Michael continued, "where there was a doctor to help her- she thinks she'll be going in to labor soon, and Charlie wants to stay here, so there's an extra seat on the raft, if you want it."

Kate turned and looked at Sawyer, who was smirking, and seemed to know that this wasn't the first time the situation had popped up.

"Thanks," Kate said quietly, "I'll think about it."

"Well, we kind of need to know something now," Michael said, "just in case we needed to offer the spot to someone else."

Kate bit her lip, turned in two. She knew she needed to be here, for Jack's own benefit, for situations like today, but then again, with Sawyer gone, there might not have been another situation like today, and she began to wonder if other than that, she was just a bother to Jack.

"All right," Kate nodded finally, "I'll come."

"All right," Michael said, smiling, "see you then."

He turned and left, and she went back to Sawyer, who was still smirking.

"Doc ain't good enough for ya?" He smirked.

"That's not it," Kate said, barely able to get words out.

"Don't worry," Sawyer said when he knew he wasn't getting an explanation, taking a good grip on her arm "your secret's safe with me."

Kate looked at him, and then jerked away, leaving Sawyer to watch as she escaped to the caves.

Author's Note: Yes I know, all these short chapters, but good news, only a chapter or two left! I need to know though, would you rather me make the next part a separate fic, or keep it in the same? It could really go either way. Thanks for all the reviews today!

Next up, on "The Regulators":

The raft sets sail, leaving Jack in a depressed state, but it's not out for long. And on top of that, Boone makes a confession to Sayid that could cost his reputation, but if he keeps it secret it may cost his sanity. Or what little he has left after getting out of that hatch.

Until next time..

October Sky


	5. Chapter Five

The Regulators

Chapter Five

To clear the flashbacks up: For those of you who have stuck with my stories, the best thing I can do to make up for my error is to say pretend like I never said that Jack hadn't had a girlfriend since high school. So sorry about the confusion! This does take place after Jack and Sarah got married, shortly after, and about two years before the crash.

"So if Sawyer didn't kill that guy, who did?" Shannon wondered out loud.

A small group of castaways had huddled together around a small fire Sayid had built. Shannon was clearly worried about her brother being gone so long, and Jack was personally glad that Sayid had suposivley not told Shannon about the attack, because that would've worried her even more, which would've not been good for Shannon's health, and though he knew it sounded selfish, but Jack felt as if the last thing he wanted to do was deal with an asthma attack.

He hadn't known why he had reacted the way he had when he heard the thought of Sawyer murdering somebody. Kate had said maybe it was just a self-conscience way of revenge, but Jack just sat there pretending as though he wasn't listening, drowned in guilt and embarrassment. It was then that he realized a half a dozen pairs of eyes were on him.

"Well the gun had fingerprints on it," said the first thing from Jack's mouth.

"Good," Charlie muttered from beside Sayid, "at least now we know the polar bear didn't do it."

That statement received multiple glares.

"Well this is just way too much fun for me," Charlie said, standing up, "I'm going to go check on Claire."

A few 'goodbyes' were muffled as Charlie left the group, but that didn't change the topic of conversation.

"Dude, Shannon's right," Hurley spoke up, "we're dealing with a hard core murderer here-"

Jack noticed Hurley's voice trail off as his eyes trailed over to Kate, who was paying just about as much interest to the conversation as Jack was, staring at the ground and poking at the sand with a short stick. He shot Hurley a warning glare, and Hurley cleared his throat, continuing.

"And- um- only a few of us here actually know how to use a gun," Hurley went on, "unless..it was suicide."

Sayid picked that moment to look up, and spotted Boone walking alone out of the forest. Exhausted and limping, Boone rubbed his neck with a hand- a bloody hand.

"I don't think it was suicide," Sayid said dryly, watching Boone as he stumbled over the sand dunes to the ocean, where he began to fiercely scrub his hands in the salty water.

Standing up, Sayid didn't notice Shannon's questions below him as he made his way towards the shoreline, sneaking up behind Boone. He was able to stand directly behind Boone for thirty seconds, and the boy never even noticed him there.

"You killed him," Sayid said simply, causing Boone to spin around, staring at him, "you were able to look him in the eye, and pull the trigger.

Boone just continued staring at Sayid, this unexplainable fear in his eyes. Or maybe it was just the fear of being caught.

"You don't know what your talking about," Boone said cooly, trying his best to keep control over his voice.

"What happened out there?" Sayid said, as Boone furiously scratched the blood off his hands.

Grabbing Boone's arm to catch his attention, Sayid was about to repeat his question when Boone answered it for him.

"It wasn't that hard," Boone said, staring Sayid right in the eye.

Sayid was taken aback by this statement, and showed it.

"I served years in the guard, yet every time I had to kill a man, I found myself falling into self pity."

"Yeah?" Boone said, reaching down and letting the water run over his hands one last time, leaving the tide a cool tone of crimson. "Well that's your problem."

(Space)

Back in the circle of castaways, Jack and Kate were both equally withdrawn from the talk around them, though Jack still found himself glancing towards Kate every few seconds. She had seemed more to himself than usual, and other than her usual 'check up' on him that afternoon, had gone out of her way to ignore him.

"Kate," Jack said suddenly, not being able to stop himself, "can I - talk to you for a second?"

"Um.." Kate said, recovering from being startled by his voice, "sure, yeah."

Jack stood up and held a hand out to help up Kate, giving a nod to the group as they left. They now were walking down the shore line, and Jack felt more and more like a kid each moment, realizing he wanted nothing more than to continue this walk forever, hand in hand with Kate, just disappearing into the sunset-

"What was it you wanted?" Kate asked, snapping Jack out of his daze.

"Oh..yeah..right," Jack said, rubbing his sore neck, "has anything been bothering you lately?"

"What do you mean, bothering me?" Kate said, giving a nervous laugh that Jack could see right through, which only scared Jack more.

"It's just that you've been-"

"Not as worried?" Kate guessed with a chuckle. "I'm guessing you're the exact opposite."

"Kate-" Jack said, stopping and turning Kate towards him.

Unable to find the words to continue, Kate bit her lip, and began.

"Um..Michael told me and Sawyer earlier that the raft was finished," Kate said in a quiet voice.

"I know," Jack said, now just more confused, "he told me earlier. They're leaving in about an hour. We're going to gather to see them off soon."

"No- that's not it," Kate said, shaking her head as her voice began shaking.

"Kate, what's wrong?" Jack asked in concerned, worried that maybe she was sick.

"I'm- I'm going with them."

Kate wasn't able to look Jack in the eye, or anywhere near him, as she said it, settling for a grain of sand on the ground as she felt her voice break, and she could feel the hurt that Jack was feeling at that moment.

"I- I don't understand," Jack finally brought himself to say, his tone rich with pain.

"Charlie and Claire are staying here for the baby," Kate said barely above a whisper, "and he offered me the extra seat."

"But-" Jack said, feeling weaker than ever..

Kate seemed to be the only thing on the island that made him feel human. She reminded him of who he used to be- pretty much who he was now- and that there was a change in the future of everyone. It was like some weird kind of hope mixed with fate that kept him up late at nights, little did she know, and now he wondered if he was about to be stood up at his last chance of- well- happiness.

"Why you?" He forced himself to finish.

"Jack-" Kate began, reaching out to touch his arm, but he jerked away.

"No," he said, more forcefully than he meant to, "I want to know. Is it because of me?"

"No," Kate said with a dry life, "I don't think we're even near the stage of this being because of you. Of anything, it's for you."

"For me?"

"You have to go through so much in one day and I know that I can't even begin to understand that," Kate explained, "and we both know because of- recent events- that things are going to be different now, and I don't want to take the chance of endangering someone else's health for my own..interest."

She hated the last word that she used, knowing that Jack was much more than an 'interest' and the 'recent events' weren't that recent anymore, but that didn't mean that history didn't have the chance of repeating itself. Not that she didn't want that, she just knew it probably wasn't what either of them should be concentrating on at the moment.

"Oh, I'm an interest now?" Jack said, forcing himself to attempt to joke, which made Kate smile at the slightest, and he returned it to her.

"But that's not the only reason," Kate continued quickly.

Jack looked down at her, smile and all trace of amusement gone, waiting for her to go on.

"If they get out there, and let's say they actually find someone," Kate said, "and we get rescued, you and I both know I'll have no where to go but back to jail."

"I won't let that happen," Jack said, though he knew Kate was right.

He had just never wanted to face the truth before.

"But if I go with them, I have a chance of escaping," Kate said, her voice softening a bit, "I dunno, maybe we'll be lucky and find some foreign country."

"You're just planning on- running," Jack said, already worried for Kate, trying to make her way in a country she didn't even know.

Kate offered him another small smile, and looked up at him.

"That's how I got here," she reminded him.

"Hey, Freckles!" A cheerful voice from a few yards away called.

Both Jack and Kate groaned at the site of Sawyer watching them, and then looked back up at each other, both knowing that this was goodbye. Neither wanted to say anything as they head distant sounds of a crowd forming on the edge of the waters. Finally, Kate made the first move by surprising Jack, lifting herself up a little and kissing Jack on the lips, quickly. Jack had wanted it to last an eternity(Sawyer could wait) but Kate obviously had other plans.

"I'll never forget you," Kate said, her voice breaking and tears developing in her eyes, "just promise me that you won't beat yourself up to badly."

"I- won't," Jack heard himself say in some different world.

It was all too unreal for him. A year ago today he was a working guy, making great pay, who had a father by his side everyday(though sometimes not _his_ side). His mother was proud of him, or at least acted that way, and he was respected by mostly all of his coworkers. Now his father was dead, his mother was angry with him, he had no job, and was forced to play hero to forty-five plane crash survivors who really knew nothing about each other. He didn't understand it. He didn't want to understand it.

Next thing he knew Kate was trailing her hand down his arms, and gave him a sad smile as she wiped tears from her eyes and then turned, running back to Sawyer.

(Space)

"So how'd he take it?" Sawyer asked curiously as kate approached him.

"Um..not well," Kate said as she reached Sawyer.

She had forced herself to stop crying, but that didn't mean her voice still didn't break with every word, and she felt her shoulders shake like mad as she forced herself to turn and follow Sawyer's eyes to where Jack was now standing on the shore, looking like a lost puppy with sad eyes that sat hollow in tired pupils as he stared out to sea.

"He'll get over it," Sawyer assured, shrugging the situation off, "he'll be fine."

Kate didn't respond as she continued staring at Jack, hating herself more and more each moment. No, Jack wouldn't be fine. He wouldn't get over it, and he wouldn't hold back from beating himself up. God how could she of been so stupid?

"You want to go pack?" Sawyer said, watching as Kate nodded, and bit her lip.

And even as she walked away, she regretted her decision with every step, and wanted nothing more but to tare away from Sawyer, and run back to Jack, throwing herself into his arm, kissing him until the need for oxygen suffocated them. But still, she couldn't bring herself to do it, and went on, though knowing that the moment she stepped on that raft she'd never be happy again.

(Space)

_Jack entered his home- Sarah's home- their home after a long day of work. Two patients in fifteen hours called for overtime, and with his father standing beside him, eyes following Jack like a hawk, it hadn't been an easy day. Of course, when was it ever now? From the moment Sarah had told Jack the news(well the moment he regained conscious), hundreds of thoughts floated around his head all day, raging from what to name the baby to would he be able to finance his child's education. The first thing Sarah did after telling Jack was check on his life insurance, and he was surprised to find out that if he were to be shot in the chest that very moment, the government could care less. Now, with Sarah's pregnancy going on five months, all of that was taken care of with help from Jack's unexceptionally supportive father. _

_"Sarah?" Jack called after pocketing the house keys. "Hey- I got dinner. I hope your in the mood for Chinese, they already have my order memorized by now, so that was easiest-"_

_When he received now answer, Jack's eyebrows cocked in worry, the first thought that something had happened without his knowledge. Making his way into the marble based kitchen, Jack set the groceries down on a new glass table, and noticing a note beside where he had chosen to lay them down. He picked up the note and read it carefully, and it wasn't long before tears formed in his eyes.._

_(Space)_

_Jack spotted his father at the end of a dark hospital hallway. Christian stood holding a clipboard, signing some last minutes papers as he leaned against the wall. Running, Jack had reached him in moments, and grabbed his shoulders, pushing his father back against the brick wall behind him._

_"What the hell-" Christian said, dropping the clipboard before seeing who it was, "what do you think you're doing?"_

_"You knew!" Jack yelled, shaking the man in front of him, not caring who he was. "You knew and you never told me!"_

_"I didn't tell you what?" Christian said between gritted teeth, holding himself against his sons restrains._

_Jack looked his father in the eyes and saw that he really had no clue what was going on. Christian took this time to shove Jack off of him, sending his son stumbling back just as a nurse walked by, shocked at the scene. Christian waved her off, and took his son by the shoulders, sitting him down._

_(Space)_

_A janitor slow moved by a little ways down where the hall met the lobby of the hospital, leaving streaks of wax lining the floor, sending a shine throughout the room, all the way to where Jack now sat against the wall with his father._

_"I just don't understand it," Jack said, lifting his head from his hands, looking at his father, who he knew was wishing for nothing more than a glass of beer, but still was taking the time to sit with his son as he dwell in self-pity, an affection that Jack wasn't used to. "How could the baby not be mine?"_

_"I don't think I have to tell you that one," Christian said, picking at a piece of scared skin and then flicking it into the cracked tiles of the hospital floor._

_"I thought she loved me," Jack said sadly, "I just- never saw it coming."_

_"Neither did I," Christian admitted, but when Jack looked up to him, he wasn't sure if Christian was talking about Jack, or a personal experience, which bothered him. "Do you want to go get something to eat? I know you don't drink, but-"_

_"No," Jack said shaking his head, "I could probably use one tonight."_

_Jack sighed as he stood up, and then reached out a hand to help his father, who was at least thirty years older than he, and way too overworked, a trait that had the tendency to run in the family. Once standing, they both dropped hands, and Christian gazed in sorrow at his son who stood before him, staring down, concentrating on the floor._

_"Jack, I can't tell you how sorry I am," Christian said sincerely, "but I don't want to think that this is your fault. This was Sarah's choice, and you don't deserve any of it."_

_"Thanks," Jack said, sniffling and embarrassed to not only be a grown man crying, but a grown man crying in front of his father, "you know what? Can I skip out on dinner tonight? I think I just want to go back to the house, figure out where I want to go from here."_

_"Sure," Christian nodded, but when Jack went silent again, he wasn't sure what to do or how to react, so he did it the only way he knew, embracing his son in a hug as he cried softly, knowing that it was all Jack could do, and he knew that he'd stick through with him, just as he promised._

(Space)

The raft was fading out into the distance, becoming nothing more than a tiny dot in the sun. Jack hadn't gone to see the castaways off, but as Charlie passed by, told him to send his regards. He hadn't moved a muscle sense Kate had kissed him, but instead had just stood there, wondering why the universe chose to treat him like this. Did he not deserve to be happy? Was that what the crash was trying to tell him?

Jack remembered how he felt the week following the night Sarah had left him, leaving only a note. He moped around the house until forcing himself to go to bed around midnight, only to lie awake, staring at the empty space in the bed beside him until sleep overcame him in the early ours of dawn. His father would call at six-thirty asking him where he was, and Jack would then stay an extra two or three hours at work to make up for the few minutes he missed that morning. The dinner set with his father was never made up, and the bartender that tended a bar only ten minutes from the hospital(the same bar he knew his father went to) came to know him as the guy who came in every night to stare at beer glasses. He never once drank a sip.

He was beginning to wonder it he'd become like that now that Kate was gone, and decided that he had every right to be. Jack was considering how selfish that was when he felt a hand rest on his shoulder. He was reaching up to it, part of him expecting it to be Kate, who had somehow come back to tell him that she was sorry, and maybe more, when he realized that it was Sayid who was behind him. Turning, Jack faced him, waiting for Sayid to say something.

"She'll be okay," Sayid told him.

"I know," Jack said, nodding and looking down to the ground.

"Besides," Sayid continued, "she has Sawyer to look out for her."

Jack snorted, knowing how ironic that was, but didn't say anything else.

"Boone was wanting to tell you something," Sayid continued a few moments later, "he's back at the caves, if this isn't a bad time."

Glancing once more out to sea, Jack saw no trace of the raft, or any sign that it had ever excised. He shook his head.

"No," he said, "it's a good time."

"Good," Sayid said and turned towards the path to the caves, assuming Jack was following him when really Jack had stopped, taking one last look out into the darkening waters, "Jack?"

"Yeah, "Jack said, shaking himself out of it, "I'm coming."

Jack took one final look back out to sea, and then turn back, heading to catch up with Sayid, telling himself that if he could get through it once, he could get through it again, and that he knew somewhere, his father was still out there. On his side.

Author's Note: THE END! I know, all these cheesy endings! Aren't they wonderful? Sorry for the extremely depressing ending, and I'm sorry to say that it will stay that way until the end. I'd like to thank everyone and anyone who reviewed. Yall rock!

Next fic 'A Bend In the Road':

Life doesn't suit to well with Jack after the raft sails, but life is good when the five sailors return- or so thought. Now Jack must race against time to save a certain castaway, which will be hard when the only person that's there to keep you sane is, well..Sawyer..

FYI, the title of the next fic comes from a Nicholas Sparks book 'A Bend In the Road'. Very good book by the way, if you like romantic novels. Also, I don't have any flashbacks from anybody planned for my next fic, and may not have some. The ending of this next fic will be two or three chapters. My goal right now is to make you cry all through the ending, and I was hoping to get some tears shed through that ending right there..muhaha..evil, aren't I? I dunno, I might continue the Jack flashbacks, though that will be a little too much. I could have Sawyer, but don't really have an idea for his, or I could have multiple..hm..

And don't worry, you'll find out what happened with Sarah and the baby in the sequel to the next fic..Jack doesn't know, so don't ask him!

Crazyhorsegirl88: Or should we say, bunny? Lol! Poor Jack..it's not his fault he's allergic!

Well, thanks again, and I'll hopefully see you then!

(no rhyme meant there)

Next fic should be up soon, so..

Until next time..

October Sky


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